Asus Eee PC

A tiny, economical notebook computer, but one without Windows

Notebook computers are cheaper today than ever before, but it’s still unusual to see one on sale for less than Rs.20,000. What’s more, cheaper notebooks tend to be rather similar: most have a 15.4in widescreen display and although they’re fairly powerful, very few are light enough, or have a battery good enough, to be really portable.

Asus Eee PC, then, is unusual. Not only is it a complete notebook computer that costs just Rs.18,000, but it’s both tiny and portable. There are several things that might put potential buyers off choosing the Eee over a conventional computer, however. Firstly, its size can be troublesome: the Eee is tiny and, when closed, it’s not much larger than two DVD cases stacked together. While this makes it easy to fit into even the most cramped travel bag, it also means that everything about it is similarly small. The keyboard is minuscule and the keys wobbly. It’s possible to type fairly quickly if you have small fingers, but we wouldn’t want to write a long document on it. The battery is also fairly small, but will keep the Eee running for two to three hours when surfing the Net.

The Eee also has a small screen. The 7in display has a resolution of just 800×480 pixels, giving far less room for programs and documents than most notebooks. This also means text is generally small. Unlike regular notebook PCs, the Eee doesn’t come with Windows XP or Vista. Instead, it uses a special version of the free Linux operating system. This uses clear menus with large icons that give access to all the free software included on the Eee. This includes the Firefox Web browser, Thunderbird e-mail and the excellent Open Office suite, which can open and edit Word and Excel documents. The downside of using Linux is that it’s not possible to install any Windows programs you might have, but with so much good software installed already there’s a good chance you won’t even need to.

Finally, the parts used inside the Eee are rather different to those found in most modern notebooks. The processor is a simple and slow one rather than the fancy dual-core chips found in most notebooks, and there’s only 512MB of memory. The biggest difference of all, though, is that the Eee doesn’t have a hard disk. Instead it stores files and programs on 4GB of Flash memory, the kind of storage used in a camera memory card. Over half of this is filled up with programs, so there isn’t much left, but it’s easy to add more storage space by plugging in an SD memory card. Overall, the Eee is a mixed bag. For everyday computing or work it’s no substitute for a normal notebook computer running Windows with a big screen and keyboard, but as a tiny, portable way to surf the Web wirelessly from the sofa, or for travellers on a budget, it’s brilliant.

Good points: Tiny and cheap; able to wirelessly surf the Web
Bad points: Small screen and keyboard make it fiddly to use
Overall: Not a suitable replacement for a proper notebook when working, but as a second device to surf the Web, or as the ultimate geek-toy for Linux fans, it’s ideal.
Rating: 4 stars (Buy It)